The Millennial Generation – those born between 1984 and 2002 – is growing up during a confounding time rife with technological advances and unprecedented sharing and collaboration against an omnipresent backdrop of political tension, international conflict and economic uncertainty.

At the center sits Millennials, controlling their world via cell phones, laptops, iPods, and iPads. But, what are these elusive and complex creatures thinking? What do they care about? How strong is their purchasing power? And who will actually earn their discerning dollars, and why?

Whether you’re a business professional trying to decode the $43 billion youth market, a marketer looking for a message that connects, or an entrepreneur trying to develop youth-oriented products, Chasing Youth Culture and Getting It Right gives readers an unparalleled field guide to the newest wave of millennials and their mindsets.

Inside this unique book, you’ll meet four major tribes: the Wired Techie, The Conformist But Somewhat Paradoxical Preppy, The Always-Mellow Alternative, and The Cutting-Edge Independent, and understand their key traits, likes and dislikes, and what kind of adult they will likely become. The book includes many examples of companies, brands, and organizations who chased the youth demographic and got it right, or who failed to nail their audience. It also explains such concepts as Warholism, Tweenabees, Hand-me-ups, Massclusivity, The Facebook Effect, and Instantity.

Author and “teen whisperer” Tina Wells explains that millennials are “more wired, interconnected and aware than any generation before them, Millennials hold great power to launch and sustain brands that impact America’s cultural landscape – and the economy at large.”

Recent studies into the attitudes and spending habits of millennials yielded surprising facts, including:

• Tweens spend $43 billion annually, which translates to about $2,047 per tween
• Young people in droves are using the Internet for shopping: a whopping 84% of respondents in our survey claim to shop online regularly
• 61% of teens hear about new products online, while 15% still hear about them from friends
• 99% percent of teens have a Facebook page
• 36% of high school students claim that they would delay or forego college due to costs

Wells’ new book, Chasing Youth Culture and Getting it Right: How Your Business Can Profit by Tapping Today’s Most Powerful Trendsetters and Tastemakers, shares insights that can help businesses adjust their marketing efforts in order to take full advantage of these trends.

Among the topics covered in the book include:

• Traits of this generation’s four main tribes – the Wired Techies, the Conformist but Somewhat Paradoxical Preppies, the Always Mellow Alternatives, and the Cutting Edge Independents

• How technology is rewiring the New Millennial

• What Millennials buy and why

• The coming of the Global Mobile: How the New Millennials will shape the future

• Why Millennials don’t like the U.S. two party political system, very likely to pass away

• Importance and impact of concepts like Warholism, Tweenabees, Hand-me-ups, Massclusivity, The Facebook Effect, and Instantity

• Organizations who chased the youth demographic and got it right …and those who failed to nail this attention-challenged audience

• The top brands millennial deem as “luxury” – and those surprisingly not on their radar, and why

• Why some brands will be around when Millennials have kids of their own

About Tina Wells:
As the founder and CEO of Buzz Marketing Group, Tina Wells has spent the last decade keeping her finger on the pulse of what’s hot for tweens and teens – what makes them tick and their economic influence. Prior to becoming America’s youth expert, she earned a B.A. in Communication Arts from Hood College, and she’s currently a student at Wharton School of Business.